Meeting Kathleen
by Almaz Arianthi Ravenwing
Summary: Kevin Riley finally meets Kathleen. Only trouble is, she is not what he imagined. Kevin/O'Donnell
1. The Meeting

It was a typical day for Lt. Kevin Riley. Captain Kirk had ordered him to plot a course for Starbase III to pick up the new Chief of security. The last chief had met his untimely end during a freak storm on their last away mission. "This new chief will have his work cut out for him, just staying alive." Riley mused.

"Hey Sulu, what's the new chief's name again?" Riley inquired. "O'Donnell." Was Sulu's short answer. "Oh, another Irishman. I wonder if he will bring news from home."

"You won't have to wait very long to find out, Mr. Riley. We will arrive at Starbase III in about one minute." Captain Kirk said with a smile. "Would you by any chance want to be part of the welcoming party?" Riley looked up in shock. "Me? Yes, sir. Thank you." Kirk smiled again. "Mr. Spock, you have the bridge. Mr. Riley, follow me."

The two men stepped into the turbolift. "Transporter Room." Kirk ordered. They arrived at a speed that never ceased to impress Riley. Then, out the doors and into the transporter room.

"Mr. Scott, lock onto target." "Locked on, sir." came the response. "Engage!"

There was a flash of light, and the sound of the transporter. There before them stood the new chief of security. Riley realized with a start that she was a woman. A very attractive woman.

"Lt. Katie O'Donnell at your service." She spoke with a definite Irish accent. Captain Kirk, recognizing the fact that she was female, turned on the charm. "Katie. Is that short for something?" he asked, feigning curiosity. "Yes. Kathleen."

Riley's mouth hung open. It took him a minute to notice that he was staring. He quickly cleared his throat. "Lt. Revin Kiley, um, Kevin Miley, that is, Kevin Riley at your service, sir. Ma'am." he quickly corrected himself.

Kirk chose that moment to cough. It sounded suspiciously like a surpressed laugh. "Well, I suppose Mr. Riley can show you to your quarters. Please report to me in one hour." With a wink at Riley, Kirk left.

"Erm, right this way." Riley motioned towards the door. Once they were walking down the corridor, Katie spoke. "Look, I've met you're type before. Just because I happen to be female doesn't mean I am not a capable officer. I've worked hard for this position, and I will eliminate any obstacle in my way. Do I make myself clear, Lieutenant?"

"Yes, ma'am. I don't doubt your capability. In fact, I was wondering if maybe after you got off duty, we could maybe grab something in the mess hall?" Katie turned around. "No thank you, Mr. Riley. I do not date fellow crew members. This is my room, is it not?" she asked.

"Hmm? Oh, yes ma'am." Riley replied. "Thank you for your help, and for your very kind lunch offer. Please don't think me rude for refusing." With a glittering smile, she entered her room.

"Darn. Not exactly how I imagined a Kathleen would act." With that solemn thought, Riley headed back towards the bridge.

***I own nothing. Well, except for Katie O'Donnell. More chapters to come. Review!


	2. The Settling In

Katie O'Donnell sighed. She had just turned down the second man to ask her to lunch in the past hour. _Was was it with these men on the Enterprise? _She wondered. _Have they no sense of dignity? The only one that was vaguely interesting was Lt. Riley- wait, no, Katie. You cannot get interested. Remember last time?" _She shook her head to clear it, and headed to the replicator in the mess hall. "Soup, chicken and rice, warm."

"Please specify the type of chicken and rice soup you would like." the replicator droned. Katie sighed again. _Today is __so__ not my day._ "Warm, plain, chicken and rice soup." she ordered. The soup appeared. Katie picked it up and headed towards the only unoccupied table in the mess hall. She bit back a curse as she tasted it. _This is COLD chicken NOODLE soup. A simple order, and this computer cannot get it right!_ Her appraisal of everything that had gone wrong that day was interrupted by Lt Uhura.

"Hi!" Uhura smiled. _Does she always have to be so bloody cheerful?_ Katie wondered briefly. "Hello." Apparently Uhura misinterpreted the unenthusiastic greeting as an offer to share a table. "So, I heard you've been asked to lunch by 4 men since you joined the crew." she said as she sat down and began to eat. Katie looked up with what she hoped was a chilling glare. Uhura took no notice. "How does that feel? Getting all that attention?"

Katie sighed. _For a communications officer, she isn't a very good listener. _"It is a distraction from my work. Therefor, it is annoying." Uhura looked up in surprise. "Are you certain you aren't Vulcan?" she asked, only half joking. For some odd reason, Katie found that very funny. She laughed until she cried. "Oh, I'm sorry. It's just nothing seems to be going right today, and I'm angry about everything, and then you ask me if I'm a Vulcan! Hahaha!"

Another woman sat down at the table. Katie recognized her as Nurse Chapel. "Are you okay?" she asked, a concerned look marring her usually cheerful expression. "Oh, yes. She's fine. Apparently I said something hilarious and she hasn't gotten over it." Uhura explained. Katie immediately calmed down. "Good. For a second I thought I was going to have to sedate you." Chapel said with a wink. "No thank you, Nurse Chapel. I'm just stressed, and for some reason, what Lt Uhura said seemed so funny!" Katie fought back another round of giggles.

"Call me Christine." Nurse Chapel- er, Christine asked. "Yes, and I'm Nyota." Uhura added. "You may as well call me Katie." Katie consented. "So, You turned down Checkov, Sulu, Riley, and Kirk all in 24 hours? Wow!" Nyota shook her head. "That's got to be a record." "Don't get me wrong. I love dating, but last time, I dated my captain. When we broke up, he had me recommissioned to the Enterprise. I can't afford to have my career ruined because of romance." Katie explained.

"Oh." The other two women answered in unison. "Yeah." Katie picked at her food. "Well, you're smart for turning down Kirk. It wouldn't last. He and Janice are just on a break." Nyota advised. "Yes, and Checkov's only like, what, 12?" Christine added. "Sulu's a basket case, but what's wrong with Riley?" Nyota asked. "Nothing. I- he's cute, and seems nice. But I just can't risk dating, or even seeing someone for lunch casually." Katie blushed. "Um, you won't mention this conversation to anyone, right?" she inquired.

"Sweetie, just because I'm a communications officer doesn't mean I'm a gossip." Uhura smiled. "Yeah, and who do I have to tell? Just Dr. McCoy and Uhura. No fun there." Christine finished. Just then the captain's voice filled the room. "Red alert! All hands battle stations! Lt. O'Donnell to the bridge!"

Nyota sighed. "So much for a quiet lunch."


	3. The Pressure

Riley sighed. First, Katie- 'Lt. O'Donnell' he repremanded himself, turned him down for lunch, then the Romulans attacked. What a day!

The bridge doors swooshed open to reveal a slightly disheveled Katie. Riley gasped. Even flushed and with her hair escaping it's tight knot, she was breathtaking. "Orders, Captain?" she asked as she swiftly made her way across the bridge. "Lt. O'Donnell, the Romulans have fired on us. For now, our shields are holding. You will observe from behind Lt. Riley and Mr. Sulu's station."

Riley caught his breath as Katie moved to stand behind him. Was that heather he smelled? He found it extremely hard to concintrate on the captain's next words. "We fire on your mark, Lieutenant."

Katie leaned over his shoulder to read the stats, and Riley completely lost control.  
"Arm photon torpedoes." She ordered. Sulu made the adjustments. "Fire!" she ordered. Riley froze. "Fire, Lieutenant!" she repeated. Riley vaguely remembered that he was supposed to be doing something. Suddenly, Katie pushed him. "Out of my way!" She grumbled.

"Photon torpedoes fired, Captain." Katie announced. "Direct hit, Captain." Sulu confirmed.

"Captain, the Romulans are hailing us. They wish to surrender." Uhura smiled. "Good job, Katie." Kirk smiled. "Outstanding performance, Lt. O'Donnell. You are dismissed." Katie smiled. "Thank you, Captain." She started to walk towards the bridge doors. Kirk stopped smiling. "Lt. Riley, I expect you to keep it together on my bridge. You are dismissed for the day. See if you can get your head screwed back on." Riley blushed and moved to exit. He noticed Katie was waiting for him.

"May I speak to you in private, Lt. Riley?" Katie asked as they exited. "Uhm, Y-yes. Of course." As they entered the turbolift, Katie stood in front of him, hands on her hips. "Forgive my language Lieutenant, but what the heck was that?" "I-" "Were you trying to get us all killed?" "No, I-" "Or perhaps you were just trying to make me look like a failure in front of the whole bridge because you don't respect me. Was that it?" "No!" Riley finally answered. " 'No' what?" Katie demanded. "No, ma'am." Riley answered miserably. "I am your commanding officer. You will address me as such." Katie leaned in until she was an inch away from her face. Riley found it exceedingly hard to breathe. "Never freeze up on me again. Do you understand, Lieutenant?" Riley blinked. "Yes ma'am." Katie half-smiled. "Good." The doors opened. "See you on the bridge, Lieutenant." Katie's smile became whole. Riley watched as she walked away. "See you." He whispered. "Katie."


End file.
